RACING:SWEEPING CHANGES to the controversial whip rules in Britain are set to come into effect before the Cheltenham Festival.
In his first major challenge since being appointed the British Horseracing Authority’s new chief executive, Paul Bittar proposed fresh amendments which were approved at a board meeting yesterday.
The board has given the thumbs-up to a fundamental change to the rules governing use of the whip, which is due to be implemented in early March, together with revisions to the existing penalty structure, which come into effect tomorrow.
Rather than it being an automatic breach now when a rider uses the whip eight times on the Flat and nine times over jumps, the figures will become the trigger point for the stewards to review the ride in question.
Stewards will then consider how the rider has used the whip in the course of exceeding the allowed number before deciding whether a breach has occurred and a penalty is warranted.
The revised penalty structure, which will take effect tomorrow, will also be retrospectively applied to suspensions still to be served. One strike over will still warrant a two-day ban, but two more will now incur a four-day suspension, rather than five days as at present.
In a radical change, repeat offences at both the lower and upper level of whip offences will not result in the penalty multiplying. Each offence will now be treated on its merits. Repeat offenders will, however, be referred to the disciplinary panel of the BHA.
Bittar’s aim has been to try to prevent Cheltenham being overshadowed by an issue that has dogged the sport since October. Paul Struthers, chief executive of the Professional Jockeys Association, welcomed the changes.
